Apple has been exploring the concept of inserting personalized content into media streams, a newly-published patent application reveals. Titled Radio With Personal DJ, the claim notes that it should be possible to add personalized or otherwise customized content to streams intended for media players, here meaning mostly computers and iPods. The content could be injected into the middle of a stream, or in random or regular intervals between media.

The kinds of material inserted into a broadcast could vary substantially, from relatively trivial information such as weather or calendar dates up through news, caller IDs and voicemail. While some of this could be displayed visually, in the form of still or moving images, Apple also proposes using synthesized voice, for instance to read out headlines or say who sent a particular voice message. To make the voice more pleasant people could customize elements like gender or pitch, or even record their own speech samples.

Primarily focused on audio, the patent concept could also address video, by for example superimposing images in the corner of playback. Apple has yet to implement any of the ideas described in the application, which was originally submitted in September 2008. The inventors are credited as William Bull and Ben Rottler, from Mountain View and San Francisco.